The $1 billion student support program, part of the Every Student Succeeds Act, is intended for academic and enrichment opportunities in the country’s poorest schools and calls for school districts to use the money toward three goals: providing a well-rounded education, improving school conditions for learning and improving the use of technology for digital literacy.
Tapping that fund for the purchase of weaponry spurred swift action in Congress Thursday morning. Senator Chris Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut, introduced an amendment to a massive funding bill up for a final vote as soon as Thursday afternoon that would block the Department of Education from allowing school districts to using federal funds to purchase firearms. The spending bill in the final stages of consideration funds the Education Department, along with most other social programs.
Public schools, especially inner-city schools, are underfunded. This administration wants to divert up to 1 billion dollars from education to give the NRA to arm educators. The article doesn’t mention but makes no mistake the NRA are the beneficiaries of this legislation. Is the Trump administration throwing the NRA a life jacket?
Will arming educators prevent school shootings? Where is the data?
Parents this could make public schools a dangerous place for our children. Arming teachers is not logical. If a trained police officer contracted by schools (Resource Officers) did not prevent school shootings or protect students, why would arming untrained educators (teachers) reduce school shootings?
Have you noticed most school shootings don’t occur in inner-city schools?
Let Congress know how you feel.
Giving teachers guns? What could POSSIBLY go wrong with this situation?
Awesome point bringing up how most school shootings don’t happen in inner city schools. Most of those school shootings happen in suburbs and wealthier areas in America. With those inner city schools, they have metal detectors and it’s been getting common for those schools to require the students to wear transparent backpacks and bags. It’s part of the school-to-prison pipeline system.
Ironic the school to prison pipeline may be a positive deviance, a proven model that prevents school shootings at minimal costs and without arming educators. Time is perfect to look at that system and see how it prevents school shootings. That system could be modified to make it humane and safe at all public schools.
There is no need to divert funds. Most of those 1 billion dollars diverted from education will undoubtedly go to the NRA in some form if Trump and DeVos prevail. Could it be the reason for diverting the funds now? The NRA is said to be near bankrupt.
That’s certainly a crazy form of irony especially if school shootings rarely if ever happen in those institutions. Funny how suburban schools don’t have those metal detectors. I know it’s not an end all be all situation, but at least it could curb more attempts. They should definitely modify to make security more humane to combat against school shootings.
Exactly! That money should just go to education, building schools, academic programs, and not arming teachers. I did hear about NRA funds being at an all time low recently, so I think that could be a smokescreen since the timing is suspicious.